Are Enemies Really Enemies?
by Sarcasmcat
Summary: Shortly after the World Tournament someone asks Rei an important question. How will this simple question change Rei's future. ReixBryan Oneshot


Disclaimer: I don't own

A/N: Another one-shot. I keep getting ideas. I hope to update my other stories with in the next two weeks, so please bear with me. A huge thanks to anyone who's reviewed my stories. You all make me want to continue writing. I hope you all enjoy this fic. Sarcasmcat

Anything in italics is Rei's thoughts and anything in the ~ is a dream~

~"That's just my way of saying hi. There's a lot more where that came for Rei."~

Rei sat up in his bed, breath coming out in loud, painful gasps. The hospital was silent, a faint light shining under the edge of the bed. The hospital smell permeated the air, leaving him slightly sick to his stomach. He leaned back slowly, wincing as wounds tightened. "It was nothing. Just a nightmare." Drawing the blanket up around his shoulders he looked out the window, moonlight illuminating the cold city. 

His mind wandered to his teammates. There was no doubt in his mind that Kai already had the others in bed, threatening them with training if they didn't go to sleep. Tyson would have argued with the older blader, saying that as the World Champion he had the right to stay up as late as he wanted. Kai would simply use his patented glare, sending the younger blader to bed. 

A small sigh broke the silence in the room, the Chinese youth wishing that he was back with his friends. He had always hated hospitals and this stay wasn't going to be any better. He closed his eyes, willing himself to fall asleep. The room was far too silent. Every night he had fallen to sleep lulled by the sound of Kai's soft breathing. He felt an overwhelming sadness and curled up, careful of his wounds.

*****

The sound of voices cut through his sleep hazed mind, dragging him back to the living world. Cautiously he opened one eye and was met by a mass of yellow and dark blue. "HI REI!" Rei slowly sat up, propping himself up against the pillows. "Hey guys!" Tyson and Max sat on the end of his bed, Kenny was sitting on a hard plastic chair and Kai was leaning against one wall, arms folded in his usual position.

"Any idea when I get out of here?" Kenny looked up from Dizzi, a smile gracing his features. "Tomorrow, but you have to come back for a checkup in a week. They'll decide then if you're in good enough shape to return home." Rei smiled, fingers running through the edge of his unbound hair. They talked until noon when Tyson, Max and Kenny left in an attempt to placate Tyson's stomach.

The bed sunk down and Rei opened his eyes to find Kai next to him, mahogany eyes showing concern for once. "You've had another nightmare haven't you." It was not a question but a statement. The neko-jin nodded once, tan fingers twisting in the blanket. The older blader brushed back an ebony strand. "Don't worry. It will get better. Try and get some sleep." The Russian got to his feet and left, closing the door with a soft click. 

Rei curled up in the bed and pulled the blankets over his head, trying to block out the weak sunlight and drive the memories back.

*****

Rei finished binding his hair and slipped his shoes on, feline eyes easily piercing the darkness. The hall was dimly lit and no nurses were visible. He slipped from the room, and slipped out of the hospital, leaving behind no trace of his absence.

Rei somehow made his way to the park where he had first run into the White Tigers when they had first arrived in Russia. The park was silent, abandoned in the night. He wandered through, thoughts wandering back to that day, before the Tournament, before he had ended up in the hospital and lost Driger for the second time.

He drew his BBA coat closer, the chill wind cutting through the warm jacket. "I should probably get back. Kai's going to kill me if I get sick." He turned back to the hospital, hood drawn up. The streets were almost entirely empty, lending an eerie air to the cold night.

He slipped past the nurses' station, the woman unaware of his passage. Rei pushed the door to his room open, freezing in his tracks, breath catching in his throat.

Bryan was standing at the window, his back to the door. Moonlight washed over him, making him seem even paler then he actually was. Rei shut the door behind himself, leaning back for support. "Bryan." The neko-jin flinched at the trembling in his voice. The Russian didn't answer; his eyes still focused on the city.

"How strong is your sense of self-preservation?" Rei blinked several times, thoughts running rampant through his head. _What is he talking about?_ "What the hell are you talking about." The older blader finally turned around, his face as impassive as ever. "What would you do to save your life?" The neko-jin shrugged. "I don't honestly know. I've never had a reason to test it."

"Think on it Rei. I expect an answer." The neko-jin moved to one side as the taller teen passed, his eyes never leaving the Russian's back. Rei hung his coat up and slipped his shoes off before slipping back into his bead. Drawing the covers up he stared at the ceiling, Bryan's question foremost in his thoughts. _Somehow I think this is a simple answer. _He slowly drifted to sleep, moonlight haunting him.

*****

The doctor was talking about something important but Rei couldn't bring himself to listen. Bryan's question was still bugging him. The doctor handed him a small bottle of pills and Rei left the hospital with a sigh of relief. Tyson and Max had started a snowball fight and dragged Kenny into it. The smaller boy was getting pelted with snowballs, his ridiculous hat covered in snow. Kai was no where to be seen but that was not surprising. "Rei!" Tyson dropped his snowball and bounded over to his friend, much like an over eager dog.

"How are you feeling?" Tyson brushed snow off of his hat and jammed it back on his head, stomach gurgling. He scratched at the back of his head, a huge grin on his face. "So, anybody up for lunch?" Rei shook his head and pulled his jacket closer. "I'm in serious need of sleep. I'll see you guys back at the hotel."

The hotel lobby was almost completely empty, something Rei was exceptionally glad for. He wasn't in the mood to deal with rabid fans or people that hated him for beating their home team. He unlocked the door to their suite and made his way to his and Kai's room. He stripped off his top shirt, dropping it on top of his bag and set his shoes next to the bag. Kai was a neat freak and it bugged him to have anything out of place. Closing the heavy curtains blocked out most of the light, leaving the room comfortably dark. He curled up on the bed, drifting to sleep.

*****

The first thing he noticed when he woke was the fact that the room was completely dark, silent reminder of how long he'd been asleep. The second was the slight dip at the foot of his bed. He slowly sat up, superior night vision easily piercing the darkness.

Bryan was sitting at the foot of his bed, hair a light point in the darkness. "What's your answer Rei?" The neko-jin didn't move any; eyes still fixed on the older teen. He flipped the bedside light on; closing his eyes briefly as the light came on. " I don't have an answer." The Russian got to his feet, moonlight eyes cold. "It's not that hard Rei. What would you do to save your life?" Rei didn't move any; eyes still locked with the cold silver ones. "I want to know what's so important about that stupid question. I think I have a right to know."

Bryan moved to the bedside, cool fingers grasping Rei's chin, forcing the younger blader to look at him. "It's important Rei. You'll never understand how important." He lightly brushed his lips over the neko-jin's, a ghostly touch. He straightened up and left, leaving behind a startled and confused Chinese blader.

Rei was still staring at the closed bedroom door when his teammates returned. Tyson waved one hand in front of the neko-jin, navy eyes questioning. Rei snapped out of his funk, smile appearing. "Hey guys! I didn't hear you come in." Max sat on the foot of the bed, knees drawn up to his chest. "We realized that. What did you do all day?" Rei ran a hand through his bangs, wincing as his fingers caught a knot.

"Slept. What did you guys do?" Max's smile brightened as he started telling the older blader all they had done. With a massive force of will, Rei managed to push all thoughts of the lavender haired Russian from his thoughts.

*****

Rei dug through his bag, managing to locate his brush with little trouble. He unbound his hair and started brushing, golden eyes sweeping over the cold city. He quickly braided his hair and changed into his sleep clothes, before pulling a chair to the window. He sat in the chair, the comforter from his bed wrapped around his body, protecting him from the cold. The door to the bathroom opened the scent of shampoo, sharp against the cold air. "Kai?" The Russian blader came over to stand by the neko-jin, his triangles gone.

"What?" Rei fiddled with the end of his braided hair, suddenly nervous. "What would you do to save your life?" Mahogany eyes lighted up with puzzlement. "Where did that come from?" The younger blader shrugged, not willing to tell his team captain about his recent visitor. "Just a thought. It's not important." Kai just shook his head, a slight smile on his face. "That's not something I expected from you. Don't stay up to late." Rei closed his eyes, leaning his head back. "I won't." _What would I do to save my life? More then likely whatever it took. _He continued thinking, paying no attention to the passage of time.

*****

Rei turned the hot water on, letting a sigh escape as the hot water poured over his neck, loosening the cramped muscle. He had unintentionally fallen asleep in the chair last night, leaving him with a strained neck. There was a pounding on the door and he shut the water off, reaching for a towel. "What?" Tyson shuffled from foot to foot nervously, trying to find a way to ask his friend a delicate question. "Max and I are going to the park to blade. Do you want to come?" Rei dried his hair and got dressed. He opened the door and put his stuff in his bag before turning to the younger blader, smiling, fangs showing. "I'll show up around noon. I need some time to think. And try not to beat any small children."

"Like I would. I beat Tala, nobody can beat me!" The younger blader dashed from the room, slamming the door behind him. The neko-jin just smiled, starting the long task of brushing his hair and binding it. He slipped his coat on and left a note for Kenny who had gone off with Dizzi to do some important computer thing. After making sure that he had the room key safely in his pocket, he too left, leaving the suite empty.

The sun was still low in the east when Rei left the hotel. The city was coming to life, leaving the neko-jin to move through the crowds, careful not to bump anyone. He had just passed an alley when arms closed around his waist, pulling him back against a hard body. There was no doubt in Rei's mind who had just grabbed him. Warm breath tickled the side of his neck, causing the fine hairs to stand up. "Do you have an answer Rei?"

The neko-jin nodded, trying to ignore the body pressed against his back. "What would you do?" Rei took a deep breath, fingers lightly stroking the smooth, pale skin of the Russian's hands. "Anything that I had too. Now why is this so important?" Bryan lay his chin on the neko-jin's shoulder, black and lavender hair twisting together in a sensual manner. "Because its human nature. One of the most important things in a human's eyes is the preservation of their life. People will do what ever they think is necessary to survive, from lying to murder. A person will do what ever they must to protect their lives, no matter the problems it creates or people in their lives it hurts."

He placed a soft kiss on the neko-jin's neck, before releasing the younger blader and vanishing into the darkness of the alley. Rei whirled around looking for the taller blader, unconsciously raising one hand to his neck, fingers brushing over the skin. He shuddered slightly, his body unable to forget the warmth and hardness of the Russian's body.

*****

"Rei, are you okay? You've kind of been out of it all day." Rei snapped out of his reverie and smiled, fangs flashing. "I'm fine, just a little tired." Max shook his head, eyes returning to the TV. Rei could feel eyes and he looked over his shoulder to find Kai watching him. The Russian's mahogany eyes were focused on him, slightly confused. He slightly jerked his head towards the door to their room, silently ordering the neko-jin into the room. Rei got up, announcing his imminent retirement for bed. The younger bladers gave him distracted goodnights, more interested in the TV.

Kai shut the door behind him, one finger pointing at the neko-jin's bed. "Sit." Rei complied and sat down, muscles almost painfully knotted with tension. "What?" Kai moved in front of the neko-jin, crouching down in front of the younger teen. "I don't know what's be bugging you lately, but I expect you to get it out of your system. I know that the Tournament is over but that's no reason to fall apart. I expect you to remain calm and focused. That's the only thing keeping Tyson from going ape-shit. Now get some sleep, you look like you need it."

Kai left the room, unaware of the tongue that the normally mature Chinese blader stuck out at him. Rei quickly changed and crawled under the covers, mind going back the Bryan's unusual behavior from the past few days. One thing in particular stuck in his mind. "-no matter the problems it creates or the people in their lives it hurts." He sat straight up in his bed eyes wide with shock. "HOLY SHIT!"

The door to his and Kai's room flew open, Tyson, Max and Kenny staring at him in shock. Tyson flipped on the light, dark eyes searching the room. "What's wrong?" The neko-jin had a blush painting the bridge of his nose and cheeks, golden eyes embarrassed. "Sorry about that. A huge spider crawled over my hand." Tyson and Max and Kenny seemed to accept the answer, though Kai stared at him, mahogany eyes piercing his own.

He turned his back on his captain, knowing that Kai didn't believe him.

*****

Rei quickly got dressed and brushed his hair, thoughts going a mile a minute. Why hadn't that come to him earlier, why had it taken him so long? He quietly slipped out into the living room of the suite, treading carefully so as to not wake his teammates. Kai was already up, but Rei had no doubts that the captain was on the other side of Moscow by now.

"And where are you going this early in the morning?" Rei turned around to find Kai standing behind him. "Out. I don't think it matters where I'm going." The Russian shrugged. "It doesn't but I'm still team captain. I'm simply watching out to make sure my idiot team doesn't do anything stupid. Go." He turned his back on the neko-jin, stepping forward slightly when the Chinese blader hugged him. The golden eyes were filled with humor when he turned back. "Sorry Kai. Spur of the moment. I'm leaving."

***** 

Something drew him, tugged at him entire being. He followed the feeling through the streets of Moscow, winding between the crowds and deserted streets. Rei pushed open the slightly rusted door and looked up. Stairs zigzagged up into the darkness, silently beckoning to him. With an exasperated sigh he started the long climb.

He pushed open the door to the roof, only slightly winded from his long climb. The wind was stronger up here then on the streets, whipping his hair around. He glanced around the roof, golden eyes immediately fixing on their target. Bryan's short hair was a little mussed from the wind, making him look slightly more approachable. Rei moved over to stand next to the Russian, the silence strained.

Rei was the first to break the silence. "How long?" Bryan didn't look at him, moonlight eyes fixed on the horizon. "Since the bus incident. I couldn't help it." The silence returned, only the wind providing any break. The neko-jin moved closer, tan fingers reaching out to brush against the Russian's. Slowly fingers twined together, pale and tan mixing together in a strange mixture of understanding and compassion. A bond formed, tempered by forced hate and unbiased love.

The End.


End file.
